streamline
Make more efficient
Streamline originally describes shapes designed to move through air or water with minimal resistance—the tapered forms of fish, aircraft, and racing cars.
From this comes the broader sense: to streamline a process is to make it more efficient by removing unnecessary steps or complications.
The company streamlined its approval process from twelve steps to three.
A streamlined organization runs leaner and faster.
Resistance through fluid
- airflowMovement of atmosphere
- turbulenceChaotic flow patterns
- slipstreamAerodynamic wake zone
- laminarArranged in thin layers
contour · teardrop · faired · wind tunnel · boundary layer · fuselage · winglet · nacelle
Remove unnecessary items
- reduceMake smaller in degree
- minimizeReduce to smallest extent
- consolidateUnite separate things
- trimRemove unwanted edges
prune · pare · distill · refine · clarify · smooth · uncomplicate · organize
Smooth and elegant
- contourBounding line of shape
- curvesBends in a line
- minimalistOne favoring bare essentials
- aerodynamicMinimizing drag through shape
tapered · smooth · elongated · rounded · chrome · tailfin · modernist · sculptural
Maximizing efficiency or performance
- workflowSequential task progression
- automationSelf-operating system design
- leanLacking fat; incline
- throughputProcessing rate over time
productivity · systematization · scalability · benchmarking · performance · effectiveness · metrics · precision
Directed flow of charge
- channelPassage for transmission
- conduitTube conveying fluid or cables
- riverLarge flowing watercourse
- tributaryStream entering larger river
watercourse · laminar · smooth · uninterrupted · continuous · steady · fluid · coursing
drag
Resistance through fluid
- airflowMovement of atmosphere
- turbulenceChaotic flow patterns
- slipstreamAerodynamic wake zone
laminar · contour · teardrop · faired · wind tunnel · boundary layer · fuselage · winglet · nacelle · spoiler
declutter
Remove unnecessary items
- reduceMake smaller in degree
- minimizeReduce to smallest extent
- consolidateUnite separate things
trim · prune · pare · distill · refine · clarify · smooth · uncomplicate · organize · disentangle
sleek
Smooth and elegant
- contourBounding line of shape
- curvesBends in a line
- minimalistOne favoring bare essentials
aerodynamic · tapered · smooth · elongated · rounded · chrome · tailfin · modernist · sculptural · flowing
optimization
Maximizing efficiency or performance
- workflowSequential task progression
- automationSelf-operating system design
- leanLacking fat; incline
throughput · productivity · systematization · scalability · benchmarking · performance · effectiveness · metrics · precision · speed
current
Directed flow of charge
tributary · watercourse · laminar · smooth · uninterrupted · continuous · steady · fluid · coursing · gliding
Bauhaus
Influential modernist design school
- locomotiveRailway pulling machine
- futurismStudy of tomorrow's possibilities
- jazzImprovisational American music genre
optimism · progress · nautical · ocean liner · Chrysler · 1930s · Americana · chrome · tailfin · monoline
- CFDfluid flow, turbulent flow, laminar flow, boundary conditions, incompressible flow
- swimmingswimming, swimmer, swimmers, swim team, swim teams
- workplacehours, cubicle, desk job, holiday party, desk
- business jargonacronym, scalability, buzzword, drill down, low-hanging fruit
- buzzwordssynergy, leverage, paradigm, stakeholder, scalable
- decor stylesmodern, contemporary, traditional, rustic, bohemian
streamlinecomplicate
Make more difficult
overcomplicate · convolute · bureaucratize · entangle · muddle
streamlinebloat
Swell abnormally
bureaucratize · overcomplicate · overstaff · fragment · complicate
- streamlined designShape optimized for flow
- streamlined bodyForm reducing movement resistance
- streamlined shapesForms minimizing fluid resistance
- streamlined processSimplified, faster method
- streamlined bodiesForms designed for minimal drag
streamliners, unstreamlined, streamlined, streamlining, streamlines, streamliner